Faytaren 1

Alodia Faytaren
Summer Assignment
Mr. Hedgepeth
AP English
Transcendence
I needed lust, the desire for possessions, vanity, and the most shameful despair in order
to learn how to surrender all resistance, love the world, and stop comparing it to some kind of
world that I imagined or wished for a perfection that I had dreamed up. I had to learn how to
leave the world as it is, to love it, and to enjoy being a part of it (Hesse 116).
The journey to self-realization is one of great expanse and continues to challenge and
pose questions every step of the way. No stone must be left unturned, for the answers one yearns
to discover may be hidden in a niche far away from the site of expectations. One candidate
exemplified by such philosophy is Herman Hesses eponymous protagonist, Siddhartha. With
the copious knowledge he possesses but destitute of the enlightenment that he wishes to attain,
Siddhartha courageously exchanges his life of comfort and family with the unknown, hoping to
acquire an astute understanding of the world like Buddha himself. Though his arduous quest
spans a lifetime, with experimentation, understanding the difference between a finder as opposed
to a seeker, and with realization of the true meaning of Om, he is able to smile like the Illustrious
one.
Siddhartha embodies multiple characters throughout his life, each one very different from
the next in an effort to truly transcend. He abandons the life of a Brahmin to become a Samana,
then leaves for a life of love, lust, and excess, then reverts to a minimalist life of a ferryman.
Each of these stages are composed of dramatically varying circumstances and ways of living,

Faytaren 2
those of which, Siddhartha embraces and acts out to the fullest until he believes he must once
against continue his travels. Though his enlightenment and wisdom were not found in a specific
period of time, each and every step were necessary for his purpose. From his hardships with the
Samana, he delved into the workings of the mind. From his pleasures of love and lust from
Kamala, he encountered the world of the flesh. Lastly and most transforming of all, with his
companionship with Vasudeva, the message of the River entered his mind and Siddhartha was
able to reach the full potential of life and thus, transcend.
When desperately in search for an item, a concept, an idea, it is easy to see nothing
except for what is being searched for. Tunnel vision obstructs the vision to the point that all is
skimmed and ignored that does not pertain to the goal. Siddhartha finds himself in this situation
for a majority of his life, desperately seeking enlightenment and wisdom everywhere he goes and
finding little success. That is, until he realizes the difference between one who seeks and one
who finds: When someone is seeking, it happens quite easily that he only sees the thing that he
is seeking; that he is unable to find anything, unable to absorb anything, because he is only
thinking of the thing he is seeking, because he has a goal, because he is obsessed with his goal.
Seeking means: to have a goal; but finding means: to be free, to be receptive, to have no goal
(Hesse 113). When he alters his mindset, he realizes that the encounters that he deemed
meaningless have actually granted further clarity in his search. As his eyes are opened and his
tunnel collapses, he comes closer to discovering the balance of life.
Om is defined as the essence of the entire universe. It is described as the root of all that
exists and as an entity that holds everything together. It is easy to come upon the denotation of
the word Om like I have just done, may it be through a click on a browser, or in the case of
Buddhists, through the teachings of spiritual leaders. Ultimately, however, the meaning of Om

Faytaren 3
cannot simply be taught. It is a concept that one must experience and embrace. Despite learning
the meaning of Om as a child and repeating it in the form of mantras, Siddhartha only truly
understands the meaning of Om from the message of the River. He witnesses the unity of all, the
harmony of the physical and spiritual world, along with the seamless blend of time and his body
himself. It is in this realization and cognizance that he completes his search and fulfills the
greatest wisdom of all. The river was present prior to his enlightenment, and it will continue to
exist, but in order for Siddhartha to experience this, he had to change internally so external
realizations could occur.
Govinda may never reach Nirvana if he continues on the same path that he has been
taking for years. All his time is occupied with doing what he is told. All his life, he has been a
follower. He followed Siddhartha to the Samanas then moved on to Gotama. Govinda is so busy
being a follower that he has had no time to form his own thoughts and fulfill his own journey, for
he, unlike Siddhartha, has not realized that wisdom cannot be taught. He is so fixated on the
spiritual and religious world that he pays no mind to the rest, which are all essential factors in
ultimately achieving enlightenment and transcendence.
From the start, Siddhartha was always different. Not only is he interested in learning the
answers, he is also engrossed in the meaning behind them. When a path led to a dead end, he
tried another. It is through these choices he made that grants him the all-knowing smile. He
speaks, breaths, and radiates the truth just as the Buddha that he admired.